


stubborn minds aren't easily persuaded

by sinceresapphire



Series: Oh Look, I've Been Prompted [28]
Category: DC's Legends of Tomorrow (TV)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-15
Updated: 2017-09-15
Packaged: 2018-12-30 00:25:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,031
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12096675
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sinceresapphire/pseuds/sinceresapphire
Summary: Post-mission, Ray just wants a nap but Nate wants to have a talk with him. It goes as well as expected.





	stubborn minds aren't easily persuaded

"Dr. Palmer, perhaps you should notify the rest of the crew about your condition."

 

Ray leans against the wall of the Waverider as a sudden wave of dizziness hits him.

 

He thinks, of course, this probably stems from the fight with the Legion of Doom the team just had.

 

Some injury or something that disagreed with him moving.

 

Who really knows though?

 

The last few weeks have been a blur with the team constantly on the go.

 

He could be getting sick by getting worn down.

 

“There’s no need, Gideon. This is just temporary.”

 

“Alright, Dr. Palmer.”

 

Ray hopes he doesn’t come to regret those words but for now, he wants to make it to his room in one piece.

 

Stumbling into his room, he presses the button near the doorway and with a ‘swoosh’, the door closes and he is alone; well, as alone as he can be with Gideon watching over him.

 

He makes his way over to his bed then kicks off his shoes.

 

Then he falls onto it because he has no more energy to take anything else off like he usually does.

 

Ray doesn’t stay awake for long.

 

Suddenly, there’s a loud knock at his door and Ray slowly regains focus while realizing he has a splitting headache.

 

“Ray! Open up Ray!”

 

It takes him a couple moments to realize the voice belongs to Nate.

 

“Gideon, would you please open the door?”

 

“Of course, Dr. Palmer.”

 

Ray tries to sit up but doesn’t get far before flopping back down onto his back.

 

‘Whoosh!’

 

The door opens and Nate wastes no time in entering Ray’s room.

 

“Is there something you need, Nate? I’m in the middle of something.”

 

Nate crosses his arms.

 

“In the middle of something? You’re laying on your bed.”

 

Ray huffs.

 

“Well, I was sleeping before you banged so loudly on my door that it would have woken the dead if we weren’t in the temporal zone.”

 

Rubbing the back of his neck, Nate smiled sheepishly at him.

 

“Yeah, I might have overdone it just a bit.”

 

Ray moves so he is sitting up with his back against the headboard.

 

Nate grabs Ray’s desk chair and moves it closer to the bed then spins it around so he’s sitting on it backwards.

 

“Alright, dude. We should talk.”

 

Taking a few moments, Ray manages to sit up and lean against the headboard before looking at Nate then waves for him to start talking.

 

“What the hell were you thinking, running into that burning building without any protection on you? You nearly died. Again.”

 

“I thought I heard people trapped inside and I couldn’t stand by and let people die on my watch.” Ray states.

 

Nate sighs because he knew he should have expected that.

 

“Ray, your life is just as important to us so you need to be more careful with it.”

 

Suddenly, he feels restless so Ray gets up off of his bed so he’s able to pace in the open area of his room where Nate isn’t sitting.

 

Nate’s eyes follow his every movement.

 

“This is my life; that means I’m the only one who decides what happens to it, for good or bad. If I want to risk it then that’s my call to make.”

 

Ray stares at the wall, suppressing the urge to punch it because the team just doesn’t get it.

 

The fact is he values their lives more than his own but that’s not a bad thing.

 

His parents taught him that.

 

“Ray, come on. I thought you were a genius.” Nate states forcefully while trying to get Ray to stop moving.

 

Standing front of the taller man, Nate places his hands on his arms causing Ray to stop and look at him.

 

“Nate?”

 

 “I don’t know where you got that idea from but you’re wrong. Your life is just as important as the rest of ours and I won’t hear otherwise.”

 

Rays sighs.

 

“I appreciate the sentiment, Nate but history has shown me that that’s not true.”

 

It was times like that that made Nate want to pull his hair out. He’s never understood how Ray could see himself like this.

 

“When the explosion happened and people thought that I died, reaction was momentary then life moved on. The whole event told me that no one really cared about me or my life and I’ve accepted that.”

 

Ray gently removes Nate’s hands from his arms then puts some space between them.

 

“I’ll be fine, Nate. I always am. You can ask the rest of the team and they’ll agree.”

 

This time, its Nate who sighs.

 

Why did geniuses have to be so stubborn?

 

The two men stare at each other, neither budging an inch.

 

“Let it go, Nate and please leave. I want to get some more sleep before the next mission comes up.”

 

Nate looks at Ray and sees the bags under his eyes and the slump of his shoulders, signaling a lack of his usual energy.

 

“Fine. Just know we’re not done with this.”

 

Before Ray responds, Nate exits his room and already formulating a plan to convince his best friend that he is wrong.

 

The door closes as Ray reaches up to rub his temples.

 

“Are you sure you are alright, Dr. Palmer?” Gideon asks.

 

“Yes, Gideon. I just need some more sleep.” He replies as he crosses his room to his bed and lays down.

 

Gideon turns down the lights and activates the settings Ray prefers when he sleeps that he believes optimizes his sleep.

 

“Thank you, Gideon.”

 

“You’re welcome, Dr. Palmer.”

 

Ray knows that Nate means well and he does appreciate the other man’s friendship especially after everything they’ve been through and the fact Nate is the one who found him the Cretaceous Period.

 

There were just some things that were best left alone.

 

Ray also knows the others on the team are more important and bring more to the team than he does so of course, if he can save their lives with giving up his own then he will.

 

He failed Anna. He failed Snart.

 

Ray Palmer isn’t going to fail anyone else if he has anything to say about it.


End file.
